Kennedy Ryan: Black Love, Caregiving & Writing Softness in Can’t Get Enough

What happens when Black love is rooted in softness, caregiving, and legacy?

In this episode, award-winning author Kennedy Ryan sits down with journalist Esther Dillard to talk about her newest novel Can’t Get Enough—a story that centers a Black male caregiver, an evolving romance, and the quiet strength found in caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s.

We explore:

• Why writing tenderness in Black love stories matters
• The challenges and beauty of caregiving
• How Kennedy weaves activism into fiction
• The importance of bodily autonomy in romantic relationships
• What “legacy” really means—especially in Black communities

If you’ve ever cared for someone, loved someone through pain, or searched for stories that feel like home… this episode is for you.

📚 Can’t Get Enough is available now.
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Episode Transcript

(00:52):
three women in kind of,in a fictional
neighborhood, an in townneighborhood, Atlanta in town
community called Skyland.
And I lived in Atlanta for 20years, so I love Atlanta.
That's how it endedup being there.
But it's these three womenwho are making,
they're really like makingvery different choices.
And one of the things,it's three friends.
And basically we're following,yes, all three of them

(01:15):
in their, their romanticjourneys, but romance.
And it is in a romance novel,but we're really exploring in
this series all kinds of love.
We're exploring, you know,familial love, we're
exploring self love a lot.
And we're exploring,with their relationship,
their friendship, theythink of themselves as
platonic soulmates.
So we're exploring all thesedifferent types of love.

(01:36):
So there definitelyis a love story.
But their love story,like their story as friends,
is just as powerfulas the romantic
partnerships that evolvedthroughout this series.
And so it's basically justthem navigating their Lives
in the first book,which is before I let go.
And we're looking at Yasmin.
And this is a woman who,had a late term pregnancy loss

(01:57):
as navigate.
And then they lost a motherfigure who was a huge
part of their lives.
And she ends up, really goingthrough a huge depression.
And like so many thosethings affect a marriage.
And so when we start thisromance novel, which is
unusual, they're divorced,And that wasn't what

(03:12):
was happening.
So it is really aboutself actualization.
It's about evolving as a woman.
It's about reclaimingyour power and in the process
finding love.
And then of course you've readCan't Get Enough, which is,
you know, Hendrix's story.
And she is, she's a verydistinct character.
You know, these are two friendswho are the other two

(03:33):
friends have, you know, theseamazing families and kids.
She's childless by choice, youknow, and a big kind of one
of the themes that I was very.
I've been very intentionalabout and hope that
people would take from thisis respecting choice.
The essence offeminism is choice.
And so often culture pits usas women against each other

(03:53):
because of our choices.
Like, you stay homeSo for people who have read

(05:16):
the first two books, weknow from the beginning of
the series that Hendrix'smom, she talks about it
even in the first book,before I let go, that her
mom is dealing with someform of dementia.
And then we get a little bitof a bigger glimpse
of that in the second bookand in the third book we find
out it's Alzheimer's.
I was having my own personalexperience with that because

(05:36):
my grandmother, had dementia.
She actually passedaway the week after I
turned this book in.
And so I saw my mom and myaunt become her caregivers.
And I, I knew whatthat looked like.
It is a, kindof an ongoing grieving,
you know, and a lot be.
People are living longerand more people are

(05:58):
being diagnosed with thesegender conditions.
So I knew there are a lotof people who are having
to become caregiversfor their parents.
And I wanted thereto be a certain resonance
in the storyfor people like that.
And, it's.
It was difficult becauseI wasn't my grandmother's
primary caregiver.
My mom and my aunt were.
But I was in the roomwhen she passed away.

(06:20):
And I, I talk a little bitabout this and can't get
enough how the human mindis just so, so amazing, you
know, about like, forexample, there just the
different lobes of thebrain that are responsible
for different things.
You can have someone, youknow, with Alzheimer's or
Parkinson's or somedegenerative condition who
cannot speak to you, and yetthey could sing a full song,

(06:44):
you know, and not miss anyof the lyrics.
So just the miraclesof the human mind.
So in keeping with that, mygrandmother, when she passed
away, she didn't recognizereally any of us in the room,
but she was asking for hermother and she was asking for
her siblings and she wasasking, you know, she was
asking for friends.
So for me, it was like therefelt like it was such a moment

(07:07):
of mercy to me and such amoment of hope in a situation
that has felt hopeless to hearher looking, you know, looking
ahead.
And even though this worldshe was very much dissociated
from, there was some kindof hope for her, going ahead.
So, yeah, so I, I, it wasan emotional situation for me.

(07:28):
And I actually, I readon the audiobook, I read,
the author's notein the beginning, and then
there's an afternoon,like at the very end.
I read both of those and it wasemotional, you know, that when
I was doing the audiobook,I was like, okay,
give me a second, you know.